It looked like the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff was complete when they hired Philadelphia Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo as offensive coordinator and retained quarterbacks coach Kevin Stefanski. They weren't. Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL was the first to report that the Vikings are expected to add Todd Downing to the coaching staff as a senior offensive assistant. It's a surprising title seeing as Downing's only 37. The move gives the Vikings another promising offensive mind and perhaps some coaching security.
Downing spent last season as the offensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders. Prior to that he was the Raiders quarterbacks coach and was instrumental in Derek Carr's impressive rise from 2015-16. It was coaching work that earned Downing the Pro Football Focus Quarterbacks Coach of the Year in 2015. He's also been a quarterbacks coach for the Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills as well as an assistant coach with the St, Louis Rams. He got his NFL coaching start with the Vikings as a research and development intern from 2001-02. He was bumped up to football systems analyst and offensive quality control coach from 2003-05. He was on his NFL coaching path. Downing isn't just returning to his coaching roots. As an Eden Prairie native he's coming home.
Assuming there are no more coaching moves, the Vikings have a full offensive coaching staff.
OC: John DeFilippo
QBs: Kevin Stefanski
RBs: Kennedy Polamalu
WRs: Darrell Hazell
TEs: Clancy Barone
OL: Tony Sparano
Senior Offensive Assistant: Todd Downing
This is a group with an interesting combination of experience. All but Stefanski have offensive coordinator experience on either the college or NFL level. Stefanski's the youngest but has the most tenure with the team. He's been with the Vikings since 2006, longer than any other coach on the entire staff. DeFilippo's work throughout his career but especially his recent work with the Eagles quarterbacks has made him a hot candidate for head coaching job. He received some, possibly serious, head coaching consideration this year from the Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals. If things go well with the Vikings offense in 2018, DeFilippo could be the hottest head coaching candidate in 2019. His time in Minnesota isn't expected to be a long one. That had to be part of the reason why the Vikings prevented Stefanski from joining their 2017 offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur with the New York Giants. If, more likely when, DeFilippo leaves for a team of his own Stefanski will likely replace him as the Vikings offensive coordinator. Downing adds further offensive consistency and security.
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